The t(8;21) translocation type acute myeloid leukemia is an acute myeloid leukemia (hereinafter also referred to as "AML") which accompanies translocation of a gene on chromosome 8 to chromosome 21, which is one the most frequent acute myeloid leukemias ranking with t(15;17) translocation type acute myeloid leukemia. The t(8;21)(q22;q22) translocation type acute myeloid leukemia morphologically associates with FAB-M2 subtype of AML (Fourth International Workshop on Chromosomes in Leukemia, 1982, Cancer Genet. Cytogenet. 11, 284 (1984); J. D. Rowley, Sem. Hematol. 27, 122 (1990)). Leukemic cells with the t(8;21) translocation are uniquely characterized by a high frequency of Auer rods and mutation of granulocytic line (R. Berger et al., Blood 59, 171 (1982)). Cytogenetically, this translocation is often accompanied by a loss of sex chromosome which is rarely observed in acute leukemias without t(8;21) translocation.
Diagnosis of t(8;21) translocation type AML can be attained by detecting the above-mentioned features or by analyzing the chromosomes. However, these methods are troublesome and the sensitivity of the diagnosis is not satisfactory.